Rockets' Hayes eager to use what he learned at center

Rockets get back the Hayes of oldAfter year at center, power forward eager to use what he's learned

JONATHAN FEIGEN, Copyright 2010 Houston Chronicle

Published 5:30 am, Thursday, September 30, 2010

Photo: Michael Paulsen, Chronicle

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Rockets forward Chuck Hayes spent last season defending centers who held a height advantage.

Rockets forward Chuck Hayes spent last season defending centers who held a height advantage.

Photo: Michael Paulsen, Chronicle

Rockets' Hayes eager to use what he learned at center

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AUSTIN — Chuck Hayes played every game last season. He started nearly as many (82) as in his previous four seasons combined (88). He was a frequent topic of conversation, lauded as a symbol of the Rockets' overachieving mentality but also held up as a 6-6 example of the "short"-comings.

Yet as much as he did last season, the Rockets missed Chuck Hayes.

The Rockets talk now about finally getting him back, as if Hayes spent last season wearing a suit on the bench next to Yao Ming.

The Rockets have repeatedly said they missed him last season when he was no longer available to fill his previous role as a defensive stopper at power forward. Hayes was instead too busy trying to get by as the shortest starting center in NBA history, forced to look opponents squarely in the chest and try to measure up.

Back at power forward, Hayes is home.

"I'm a natural four," he said. "I think I've been a four since I picked up a ball. It comes naturally to me. The center is a position I can play, but the four spot is my niche."

Like a point guard who brought the ball up the floor from his first pick-up game, Hayes never thought of himself as anything but a power forward. But he said there were benefits to a season spent battling centers from Dwight Howard to Shaquille O'Neal.

"It lets me know I can guard anybody," Hayes said. "It gave me a season-long opportunity to learn how to finish over bigger guys. Now, I not only have the fours scouted but also the fives."

Still, the Rockets are determined to return Hayes to power forward and keep him there. As a power forward off the bench, he was an asset, able to come in when top-scoring power forwards were on a roll and to slow and sometimes even shut them down. As a center, he was always going to be overmatched, needing all his defensive abilities just to have a chance. He particularly had a tough time keeping up on the boards.

"Chuck is such a monster at the defensive end because he's so smart," Rockets coach Rick Adelman said. "He can take any low-post player. He knows what we're doing defensively all over the court. And he becomes a much better rebounder when he doesn't have to play against centers. ... I think his quickness becomes a factor."

A lean passing machine

Hayes even looks more like a forward this year, having dropped 15 pounds while adding lean upper-body muscle and getting past the fluid build-up in his right knee that slowed him through the final six weeks of last season. Beyond that, the Rockets believe he is an asset as a high-post passer in an offense that will emphasize that style more than ever.

"He has picked up our offense to the point that he's making plays now that we want our big guys to make," Adelman said. "He can make passes. He's a smart player. You really see the difference between Chuck this year over the last two years.

"He's very comfortable right now. Sometimes he gets a little too creative for his own good, but he knows what we're trying to do. That's really a benefit."

That could also be a product of his season with an increased role. He always had an understanding of the offense. He has added confidence that came with repetition.

Bigger offensive threat

"I'm just being aggressive, trying to be a playmaker, make the defense respect me," Hayes said. "I try to be a threat on the offensive end. The whole league knows I can play defense pretty well, but if I'm aggressive (offensively), it takes the pressure off Yao, Luis (Scola) or somebody else. Instead of somebody always creating for me, I can create for somebody else.

"On the court, I'm the same old Chuck. You know what you're going to get out of me, but I'm going to have more fun doing it, and I'm going to be aggressive if I can."